Golden Gate Canyon SP & St. Louis Cardinals vs Colorado Rockies

I know this post won’t interest as many people because it’s mostly about my Cardinals but there are also a few photos from the beautiful state of Colorado.
The reason it was a big deal for me to see the Cardinals this season is because two greats are retiring – long-time Cardinal, Catcher Yadier Molina, and returning Cardinal, Slugger Albert Pujols. We now know the Cards will be in the post-season which is nice considering the retirement of these players. I hope they/we go out with a bang and a banner!

Denver Bound

While in Dixie National Forest, I got a wild hair. My boys, the St. Louis Cardinals, were coming to play in Denver. I asked a friend if they would be interested in meeting me. After scrambling to buy tickets and finding a place to camp, I started making my way toward Denver. I took a few photos along the way. I also posted a video after the photo gallery.

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Ever since I got hit by a dust devil, I regard them with a whole lot more “respect”.

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Dixie NF/Bryce Canyon NP

It turned out that one of the couples that I met at the North Rim area, Bruce & Char, were going to the same area as I was after leaving the North Rim – Dixie National Forest in Utah. I asked if they would mind if I camped near them & they graciously agreed.
(My friend Penny had originally told me about this area and suggested it would be a good cool, high elevation place to stay while I visited nearby Bryce Canyon and Zion. She thought I would like the area, too, and she was absolutely right. Thanks, Penny!)
Bruce & Char found a nice spot on Strawberry Ridge Rd (FR239) with cell reception. I camped a stone’s throw down from them. At this spot, we were 33mi from Cedar City, 44mi from Bryce Canyon, and 43mi from Zion, so it’s a very nice central location. Temperatures were great (late July/early August). The road in was slightly rough but not too bad. There was a fair bit of traffic from razors, side-by-sides, etc., but I’ve seen much worse. No services but dumpsters at Navajo Lake are open to dispersed campers – 8mi away. Water, etc., is a bit tougher. A few amenities are probably available at Duck Creek Village but I’m guessing they are expensive. I arrived in the area all stocked up, and I also made a trip to Cedar City.

Please see photo captions for much more info.

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This video shows the amazing size of the sheep herd. And…sound up.

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Grand Canyon North Rim, Part 2

This North Rim visit consisted of beautiful scenery, wildlife encounters, stunning sunsets & night skies and even a somewhat dicey hiking adventure. I will definitely visit again.

As usual, click the first photo for a slideshow and explanatory captions (Click the “i” to see long captions ).

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View from North Timp

Vermillion Cliffs / Grand Canyon North Rim

My next route took me through the extremely desolate–and grand–Northern Arizona/Marble Canyon/Vermillion Cliffs area on my way to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon (Highways 89 & 89a). I tried not to think about how bad it would be to have car trouble in this particular area. The 100+ temperatures on this trip were the hottest I had experienced so far in my travels. Climbing to the higher altitude of Jacob Lake, my initial camping spot, brought welcomed cooler weather.
I decided I liked the Canyon’s North Rim better than the South Rim. It’s much less crowded and still quite beautiful. And the approach to the entrance is, in my opinion, much prettier.